This invention relates to a new and distinct plant variety of the Araceae family and, specifically, to a new and distinct plant variety of Spathiphyllum which is named Araceae Spathiphyllum `31581`.
Certain plant varieties of the Araceae family are well known in the foliage plant market and among these is the `Viscount` variety of the Spathiphyllum. This variety is characterized by, among other things, foliage with leaf blades that have a solid green field and an inflorescence with a spathe of white tending to a pure snow white.
The variety forming the subject matter of this application is hybrid of interspecific genetic background from a cross between `Viscount` (unpatented) and `Petite` (unpatented). A general objective of the invention has been to provide a variety of the Spathiphyllum genus which would be distinguishable from the other known varieties of this species and suitable for sale in the foliage plant marketplace.
This new variety of Spathiphyllum was asexually reproduced by tissue culture near Apopka, Fla. and such reproduction has shown this new variety to come true in successive generations. This propagation of the new variety by tissue culture in the usual controlled environment clearly shows the continued maintenance of the characteristics described herein which distinguish this new variety from the parent varieties and all other known and related varieties mainly by the darker and more rounded, less elongated and thicker leaves and its greater resistance to the burn problems associated with `Petite`. The length of the leaves is about 20% greater than their width. Furthermore, this novel variety has about a 30% greater propensity to sucker than do its parents. The length of the peduncles is about 30% less than that of the parents, thus contributing to a compact size, thereby adding to its overall attractiveness and facilitating the packaging of the same for shipment.